Recipes
Lamb tagine
This is the perfect recipe for entertaining, batch cooking or freezing ahead for Christmas. It’s best made a day or two before, or you can cook low and slow in the morning. This is lovely served with my giant cous...
Giant cous cous with roasted winter vegetables & pomegranate molasses dressing
This goes so well with the tagine or stands alone as a delicious salad. You can make all the elements the day before and refrigerate. Then mix up on the day (you will need to break the couscous up a...
Smoked Mackerel Pâté
Here is an irresistible, light canapé recipe – a lovely starter or gorgeous for a buffet! This is a tasty pâté or dip to enjoy that takes 5 mins to whip up and is packed full of delicious flavours, and...
Spicy smokey sticky party nuts.
These nuts are show stopping and addictive. Perfect to go with drinks or a lovely homemade Christmas present. Or pop them in a salad. These are a party staple for me but, be warned, they will disappear fast! This makes...
Homemade ricotta with slow roasted pumpkin, sherry, walnut & sage
This is a gorgeous recipe which is simple to make but suitably indulgent for an autumnal lunch or dinner party. I like using Red Kuri squash with its dry and rich flesh which roasts beautiful and pairs perfectly with the...
Rolled pork belly, crushed potatoes, soft herbs, mustard & capers
Pork belly is one of my favourite things to cook and eat, I am obsessed with the gorgeous meat, the flavourful layers of fat, and the constant challenge in making the skin crackle! It’s an endless and generous process. What...
Bay & vanilla panna cotta, roasted quince & crumble
Serves 6 30 minutes prep, plus overnight setting time in the fridge For the quince:Serves 6 Prep & cooking time: 75 minutes prep and cooking time Preheat oven to 180°C. Place the quince halves in a baking dish, cut side...
Nourish to Flourish
Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach Charlotte Lau explores the benefits of incorporating another healthy ingredient into our diets. This month it’s salmon
Super speedy avocado toast
It has become a bit of a cliché, but you really can’t beat avocado on toast! The combination of smooth avocado and crunchy toast is the perfect pairing… top with a poached egg and you have a balanced meal based...
Individual Salmon en Croutes
This familiar dish looks as if it’s tricky and long-winded to prepare, but it is much simpler than the beefy version, especially if you use ready rolled pastry. I’ve made these as individual servings, but you could also use a...
Coconut Prawn Curry
This is a really quick and simple curry – large succulent prawns go well with the spicy coconut sauce. Use either king, tiger or Atlantic prawns – fresh or frozen.
Duck with honey & fennel
Our favourite duck supplier is Creedy Carver in Devon who grow incredible quality free-range ducks at their farm in Devon. The poultry industry has been badly affected by avian influenza so we – chefs and consumers alike – need to...
Strawberry & elderflower buttermilk puddings
Serves 6-8June is when the new season strawberries are sweet and juicy, and the trees are full of frothy elderflower. Together, they make a delightful early summer dessert.
Parmesan shortbread with pesto, slow roast tomato & feta
These crunchy Parmesan shortbreads are delicious on their own, but when topped with homemade pesto, slow roasted tomatoes and feta, they are sublime. All the elements can be made two days before and assembled when needed. Just be sure to...
Smoked salmon mousse on cucumber cups
Light as air lemony salmon mousse on cool cucumber. And so easy to make! The mousse can be made the day before, and the cucumber cut a day ahead and stored in the fridge. Assemble up to a couple of...
Dates stuffed with goats cheese, pistachios & pomegranate seeds
Serves 4 approx as part of a canape selection These decadent Medjool dates take moments to prepare, but are so delicious and look beautiful. The Medjool date is the king of dates in both taste and size, with a chewy...
Aubergine Caviar on Crostini
Serves 4 generously – feel free to halve or double! A beautiful vegetarian canapé that can be made up to 3 days in advance, and then assembled on the day. It’s so flavourful and delicious, it can be likened to...
Jazzies
Makes approx 60 jazzies The Seeding MethodThe seeding method is one way of tempering chocolate that is great for small quantities of chocolate and for home environments that require minimal mess and equipment.
Courgette, garlic & chilli crostini
This easy, healthy but-so-delicious courgette dip is gorgeous on crostini or pairs beautifully with crisps or cucumber to dunk. Perfect with drinks and the best way to start an evening. Prepare well ahead so it has time to chill –...
Roast beetroot & goats cheese salad with maple roasted spicy nuts
Roasting beetroots is so easy and the beautiful earthy flavour works so well with the candied nuts, bitter leaves and creamy tangy goats cheese. All the elements can be prepared well in advance and put together quickly before serving. This...
Beef daube
This stunning Provençal beef casserole is lovely to have with friends. Make it on Saturday morning to enjoy in the evening or on Sunday – it also freezes beautifully. The long, slow cook makes the beef meltingly soft, and this...
Apple & cherry flapjack pudding
This pudding can also double up as a treat for morning coffee. The crunchy oat topping flavoured with cinnamon is a breeze to whizz together. I use frozen cherries (bonus of no stones) and the apples are roughly chopped –...
Squash, Caramelised Onion and Feta Filo Pie
Filo pastry is tricky to handle as it dries out as soon as you look away from it, so have a damp tea towel/kichen roll handy to cover it if needed – and ensure that all the other ingredients are...
Apple and Rhubarb Lattice Pie
You will need a nice deep pie dish (26cm) and a pastry brush I have made this pie with two types of pastry – shortcrust for the base and puff for the latticed top. It works just as well with...
Easy Fish Pie
Supermarkets sell ‘fish pie mix’ containing pre-cut chunks of salmon, cod and smoked haddock, which works well, but feel free to choose your own selection. I like to go for a white fish, a smoked type and something with a...
Cod with Smokey Black Bean Cassoulet
This gloriously satisfying but healthy dinner is so delicious and really easy to prep. Sweet cod, married with deeply savoury smokey black beans, is heaven on a plate. Prepare the cassoulet in advance if you want – even the day...
Homemade Nutty Granola with Berries & Greek Yoghurt
This a super delicious healthy granola, and so tasty you can enjoy with yoghurt, fruit, milk or even as quick snack on its own. It is so much healthier than the shop bought ones as it has very little sugar...
Watercress Soup with Cannellini Beans
I love the peppery flavour of watercress, which is also incredibly good for you. The cannellini beans, for fibre and protein, create a warming hearty meal of soup. This freezes beautifully so it’s a good one to have on standby. ...
Lemon Roast Chicken with Pomegranate Molasses & Cauliflower on a Bed of Lentils
This dish sounds fancy, but it’s so simple, totally flexible and utterly flavoursome, filling and feel good food. Pulses are so good for our health and longevity. These little lentils vertes are simply boiled while the chicken roasts, and then...
Perfect Prep
Mark Charker, Head Chef at The Bell in Ticehurst, explains how to take the stress out of Christmas cooking by getting some prep work in early All this prep leaves only cooking your festive centerpiece on the big day, and...
Tomato Sauce
Having an easy and delicious tomato sauce on hand, or in the freezer, means that you will always be able to rustle up a quick pasta dish, pizza, or even a flavoursome tomato base for a ratatouille or caponata. Large...
Tomato Tarte Tatin
This is just an upside down tart, most often found in apple form, but for a simple – and it really is simple – savoury version, it works brilliantly with tomatoes, because (in theory at least), the pastry will stay...
Stuffed Tomatoes
The risotto in this recipe is a worthy dish on its own, but stuffing it into a big beefsteak tomato and baking in the oven turns it into something special. A stuffed tomato make a good starter, light lunch or...
Strawberry, Rhubarb & Rosewater Parfait
Depending on how you sell it, this dessert could be called a fool or even a mousse. It’s not quite the season for rhubarb or strawberries, so do use frozen if fresh are not available/up to much. This recipe can...
King Prawn Linguine
This is a fresh tasting and not too filling pasta dish that is really quick and easy to put together. It does contain garlic, which is fine as long as you are both eating it. The quantities are easily doubled...
Cheese Fondue
Unfashionable? Maybe. Cheesy? Definitely! But a fondue is such fun – and the ultimate sharing food. What could be better on a cold February day than dipping crusty bread and crudités into a delicious blend of melted cheese and alcohol?...
Nougat
1. Roast the nuts on three baking sheets at 160˚C for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Take out the oven and leave to cool. 2. Put 400g of the sugar in a thick-bottomed saucepan with the glucose and 125ml...
Pan Seared Scallops, Cauliflower & Crispy Chicken Skin
For the cauliflower: 1. Cut the cauliflower into florets. 2. Slice 2 large florets thinly on a mandolin and place in a separate container. Add 100ml white wine vinegar over the sliced florets and 60g caster sugar. Carefully stir, ensuring...
Hot Smoked Salmon
This dish is a real crowd pleaser and centrepiece showstopper. The delicate smoky flavour combines perfectly with freshness of the dill and lime. It is extremely versatile – have it on Christmas morning with scrambled eggs and muffins, whip up...
Raspberries Baked with a Pecan, Cinnamon & Oat Crumb Topping
The speediest but most delicious pudding you can imagine. The topping is made in the time it takes to melt the butter. It can be made in advance and happily kept in the fridge. Using frozen raspberries means there is...
Warm Crab & Horseradish Dip with Homemade Tostaditas
This utterly sublime crab dip takes 3 mins to put together, perfect for having with drinks. I’ve paired it with homemade tostaditas, which can be made a few days in advance and stored in an airtight container (or simply serve...
Dauphinoise Potatoes
This is a glorious creamy potato dish, flavoured with Gruyère cheese and garlic. It can be cooked the day before and simply reheated when ready to serve. It’s super quick to make if you use a food processor. The slicer...
Beef Carpaccio
This is a wonderful way to enjoy fillet of beef. The perfect entertaining dish, as it can all be cooked in advance, makes the beef go a long way and is gorgeous with big salads, or hearty potato dishes such...
Black Cat, Bat & Toothsome Cupcakes
These are surprisingly easy to make – to be quite honest, any combination of ghoulishly coloured icing and lurid sweets will go down well. Let your imagination run wild and get monstrously creative. Pre-heat oven to gas 4/160˚C. Line cupcake...
Creepy Pizzas
If you don’t want to go to the bother of making your own pizza dough, there are kits available (near the ready rolled pastry at most supermarkets), and even part baked pizza bases and tomato topping. They can be circular...
